Star Wars: Tides of Miras
by SigmaScott4
Summary: Several months after the Battle of Hoth, a new mysterious water planet has been discovered in the Unknown regions by both the Empire and the Rebel. After weeks of not hearing from the dispatched investigation team, Alliance Command sends Lt. Kasan Moor and her two fledgling pilot recruits to find them. Unaware of the native sentient life that lurks in the planet's oceans...
1. Chapter 1

The blue tunnel faded away.

A large blue sphere against the black star-decorated void of space rapidly took its place in the viewport. With a push of a button, the autopilot surrendered control of the X-Wing back to its pilot. A quick glance of the radar revealed the two ships that traveled at her side during the hyperspace trip were still right there, alongside her. The beautiful blue ocean planet staring right at them was slowly and gradually getting larger as the ships' forward movement was subtly reducing the distance between the two. Everything seemed to be going as they should.

Perhaps to someone who didn't travel the galaxy much, the sudden sight and situation would've taken some time to adapt to. However, not to a formal Imperial ace pilot and three-year Rebellion pilot. This was yet another day at work for Kasan Moor. With a glance at her long-range scanners, the intelligence regarding the Imperials' search patterns and day cycles was confirmed to be correct: the massive signal readings generated by the Star Destroyer was all the way on the other side of the system at this time. They were safe from detection. At least for the moment.

As redundant as it might've been, given the nearby radar readings, standard protocol willed Kasan's hand to click on her communicator and open up the comm channel to her two co-pilots.

"All wings report in."

"Umbra Two, standing by." A deep, gravelly male voice responded punctually in the commline. Private Dax Zynn, no doubt.

"Umbra Three, standing by." A scratchy, yet androgynous voice promptly responded after. Unquestionably coming from Mynce.

Briefly looking over to her left, she saw the small, red, nimble hull of an A-wing, flying snugly in formation, the vague shape of a female trandoshan in the cockpit. Looking at the right, she spotted the long, slender, yet heavily reinforced hull of a Y-wing keeping in formation with no difficulty, containing the general shape of a young human male inside its cockpit. Confirmation that they were right there with her. As if the radar readings and reporting in weren't confirmation enough. Never hurts to check, however.

Moor glanced down at her onboard computer and began pulling up information regarding her mission. She had memorized the basic outline and core objectives like the back of her hand: fly to the unknown regions undetected, reach the mysterious planet of Miras, evade discovery by the Empire, locate the missing investigation team, and extract them. The water-dominated planet of Miras was a recent discovery by the Imperial fleet, with the outer rim fleet managing to stumble upon it and send a small task force to investigate it for resources and other assets they could use in the war. Fortunately, Rebel spies managed to obtain information of this discovery, and Alliance Command didn't hesitate to arrange their own investigation team to the planet, hoping to learn about the biosphere of the world, and find something of use in the war and prevent the Empire from obtaining it first. It's been weeks since they reported back, however, and they're long overdue. That's why Kasan and two of her freshly trained pilots, are here. Umbra Squadron, they were named, although they need more pilots trained and enlisted before they could be considered an official squadron

However, finding the investigation team sent here was going to be easier said than done. At best, they're still in hiding to prevent from being found by the Empire, and at worst, they were discovered and either destroyed or captured. It's fortunate indeed then, that the team's last known transmission and the general area of origin were recorded by Alliance intelligence, and downloaded onto the pilots' computers for reference. Pulling up the information, she saw the area of transmission: currently a small, rocky section of the ocean-dominated surface on the south-eastern hemisphere. Planetary scans revealed a heavy storm that was currently raging over the area. A double-edged sword, the lieutenant observed. While the heavy rainfall and violent waves would make it somewhat difficult to see through, it would also provide great cover against the Imperial patrols that would inevitably reach the sector. No way they'd be able to detect the alliance presence in that storm if they ever came over here.

Looking at the planet reminded Kasan a great deal of Mon Calamari: pretty much 99% ocean with the occasional small landmass scattered here and there. She couldn't deny the pretty look of it, however, as the light from the sun cast over the day side of the planet and drew away the curtains of shadow that hid its beauty. A brilliant blue sphere painted on the blank black canvas of space, dabbed with the odd stroke of white to show it's clouds and storms, and every once in a while, occasionally sporting a small dot of dark brown rock or a brush of green and yellow island. Lieutenant Moor wished that most of the art she's seen in her life could be half as pretty as the sphere that she was currently staring at.

However, there was work to be done, and Kasan pulled her admiration and musings back into the rear of her mind and brought the mission and objectives back to the front. She gazed over at the storm-covered sector of the south-east hemisphere of the aquatic world, knowing precisely where she and the others were to head next. The sunlight's illumination wasn't going to last for that much longer in that sector, however, seeing how the planet's rotation was bringing it closer to the dark night side of the planet. Navigating the storm would be even more difficult if they waited too long, so Kasan opened her comm channel back to her two wingmen again:

"Alright, guys. Do you have the target location your radars?" She spoke into it.

"Affirmative, Lieutenant Moor. I'm ready to follow you down there on your signal." Dax responded.

"I've got it the location locked on as well. Just give me the word, Lieutenant." Mynce confirmed on her end.

"Good. Both of you stick to my wings and stay in formation. We're going down." Kasan gave them their orders.

With a slight push of her joystick, the X-shaped craft that Kasan was riding in dipped down and began zooming straight towards the marked sector, with Umbras two and three following rigidly and obediently, sticking to her sides like Mynocks to power cables. The blue sphere became larger and larger as they rapidly approached, eventually taking up the entire viewport, and keeping the streak of white that marked the storm dead in the center of their path. Gradually, the black of space began vanishing, replaced by the thick foggy clouds that made up the storm and obscuring the vision of the three fighters. Thankfully, Kasan still had her onboard instruments to measure and judge just how far above the surface she and her small squadron currently was. The clouds became thicker and thicker, moisture rubbing against the craft, Drops of water sprinkling the viewport. Suddenly, the clouds they were passing through gave way, and a great distance in front of them was a gigantic mass of violently swaying and shifting water.

Knowing immediately that they had made it into the storm and out of the upper atmosphere, Kasan didn't hesitate to pull back on her joystick, tilting her X-wing up, allowing the ship to directly meet the downpour produced by the clouds as she kept her distance from the ocean surface. A quick glance to her sides revealed her wingmen had done the same, keeping strictly within formation as they were ordered to. She couldn't suppress a small feeling of approval towards them. Good pilots, doing as ordered. Turning her attention to her viewport, the thick and heavy rain bombarded the transparisteel and overall craft by the millions, rushing in at velocity speed and partially blinding the pilot with its intense downpour crowding the sight in front of her. It was like a planet-sized bucket was being poured down on the world, constantly, with no signs of stopping anytime soon.

"Zynn, Mynce, begin scanning for any alliance comm lines or signals that we could lock on to, and keep a close eye on your sonar at all times. We don't want to crash into any rocks or landmasses."

"Roger that, Lt. Moor."

"Understood. I just hope that we don't have to stay in this dish sink for very long."

She ignored the comment from Mynce and activated her own scanners to begin searching. While she and her wingmen were well above the reach of the ocean's wrathful waves, she took her own advice and kept her eyes on the sonar readings half of the time, just in case. It was effectively her only method of navigating through the blinding storm of water. Kasan took a small moment to adjust a strand of her dark-red hair that was poking out of her helmet, an unconscious nervous habit of hers. She might have been an ace pilot, and Zynn and Mynce were no rookie fliers, but navigating a storm with only sonar as your true eyes is very dangerous. Every passing second, the rebel lieutenant half-expected the rock towers to show up to try and put an end to her life. Her finger on the joystick twitched, ready to evade left or right at a moment's notice, her guard constantly up.

She and the others flew above the surface, keeping their eyes glued to their screens as they searched. In the corner of the dark haired woman's vision, a large black fish with dozens of fins on its sides rose out of one of the waves. It cried out a high pitched wail before submerging back beneath the stormy sea. Well, at least that was one sign of this planet hosting indigenous life. Kasan's mind wandered. What other kinds of creatures existed on this world? Was there any sentient life? They haven't come across any signs yet, but then again, they just got here. If there are sentient beings, could they be the reason that the investigation team hasn't reported back? It was all possible, but only supposition at this point. None of it would affect the mission, most likely, Kasan presumed. They were simply here to verify the status of the investigation team and extract them if necessary.

She hoped that nothing unexpected would arise to complicate this operation, but she's flown enough missions by now to know better than that. Nothing was guaranteed, and anything can happen.

She simply had no clue what this time.

—

At long last. Outside

Sy Khallsina relished the chance to bask in the warmth of the orange sunset on her skin, the familiar smell of ocean freshwater in her nostrils, and the gentle breeze blowing into her long brown hair. She treasured every moment of the feeling. After having to spend the entire day cooped up in the hut with her parents, being forced to help out with chores and other boring tasks, she can finally leave the home and go out to experience this feeling that she desperately missed all day.

She wished she could savor the feeling, but she did technically have a job to do and had to do it quickly, so she allowed her bare feet to begin walking her across the large floating walkways, headed towards the fishing corner of the buoyant village of Futajena. Weaving through the crowds of crossing people who made up the population, and keeping an eye on the many signs posted along the fences to keep track of where she was and which way to go. Various shades of Blue, yellow, gray, white, pink, purple, and multicolored clothing flashed by as she got through the crowd, along with a wide range of dark tans to pale whites in the skin of the people she lived with. There was also some great variance in terms of how much skin they exposed, with some bordering on swimwear. Khallsina personally found much more comfort in her faint blue sleeveless top and complimentary tan long skirt.

One look over to the left side gave her the reason she couldn't waste too much time: the orange glow of the gradual sundown was being overtaken by incredibly dark and thick clouds, and the many many sharp lines below them, indicating heavy rainfall. A storm was raging and rapidly headed in their direction. She had to go find her brother and urge him back home before the storm hit.

Otherwise, It seemed like a typical evening at Futajena: hustle and bustle, people attempting to get back home after a long day of work, and much traffic in the walkways. The floating oceanic village has endured for centuries now, with people managing to get by despite the dangers of the sea predators and the relative difficulty of finding food. And in all likelihood, the village will continue to exist here for many centuries to come. Thanks in no small part to the brilliant minds that handled their resource management, and powerful swimmers and fishers who could rake in tons of edible seafood while evading death via a school of Hasonil, or a Nilohsi shark, or gods forbid a Grand Mourtourna or whatever else the hazardous sea could throw at them.

That said, She never could shake the feeling that there was more to this world than what she and the others could see with their eyes. More to life than just survival. It was important, for sure, but how could that be the end of their progression? Surely there were more places they could explore. More discoveries to be made. Expanding their world and their resource pools so that everyone in the village could live comfortably, and not just live sufficiently. There were many of the villagers who held such ambitions and many others who disagreed, preaching about the massive risks of exploration and how Futajena should stick to its current lifestyle for the safety of all. Sy could certainly see their point, given the number of predators, but at the same time, she found herself more swayed by the more ambitious villagers. There were risks, sure, but the potential rewards were undeniable.

She remembered tales of a great Futajenian fisherman once who once deviated from his course at sea, unsatisfied with the number of catches he made that day. He had to contend with a giant Nilohsi shark that was angered from a perceived breach in its territory, and managed to fell the creature after a long and grueling battle. It was there that he discovered an abundance of a new type of edible fish in the area, and that area would go on to become one of Futajena's most fertile catching grounds. Ever since she was young, Sy found herself enamored by that story, and she had fantasized on making such discoveries herself on more than a few occasions

Eventually, the young brunette snapped out of her thoughts as her eyes settled on a collection of stands selling fish meat and plants, and docks with many many boats rolling in. She didn't need to look up at the signs to recognize it as the fishing section of the village, and where her brother; Mo Khallsina was located. The young man always made it a priority to inspect the place every evening, given his duty as a recorder. Even if she found his uptight nature tiresome, she couldn't help but admire his dedication. Turning to the right, she entered the fishing area, surveying the dozens of people around, searching for any trace of her brother.

Her search was blissfully short, as she eventually spotted a distinct dark-brown amidst all of the black, blonde, and gray hair that sat atop the crowd. Sy instinctively walked over in the direction, her brother's light skin scrawny frame becoming apparent the closer she got. He was facing away from her, his eyes glued firmly to his paper as he scribbled away the recordings. Yep, that was Mo alright. She approached the young recorder and spoke:

"Hey there, Mo! Buried your head into your notes again?"

The Khallsina boy looked up from his notes, smirking as soon as he laid eyes on his sister.

"Only doing my job, sister. Perhaps you could learn from my example." He japed.

"Well, maybe you'll be glad to know that this time I'm actually doing my job." Sy proudly retorted.

"By job, do you mean disobeying our mother and wandering off to the small island you're not allowed to go to again?"

"No, I mean our parents sent me to come get you. A storm's going to roll in soon, and we don't want to get caught in the middle of it."

The young man glanced over at the great black cloak spread across the orange sky over to the west of the village. He nodded.

"I see. Well, good thing that I've got almost everything written down now. I'll go deliver it to the Chief and then meet you back home. Do you think you can pick up a few fish at one of the stands and bring them home? That storm might last a while and we'll want some extra food just in case that happens."

"Sure thing, Bro! Just be sure to look up from that book every once in a while, or you might trip!"

Mo gave her nothing in response other than a wide smirk, taking the playful jab in good fun. He proceeded out of the fishing area, while the brunette girl stepped over to the fish stands, only stopping when she heard him call at her from afar.

"Oh, and Sy, no wandering off exploring or anything! I'm serious!"

Sy bit back a groan of exasperation before continuing on to the stand. As she was making the purchase with the vendor, she found her gaze being drawn over to the edge of the village, where a collection of small rocks, each barely a foot wide, dotted the waters that eventually led up to the small stone island. The tiny land mass was rumored to hold a great many secrets and evidence of other people existing in the world, and one that her cautious mother had forbidden her to go, for fear of what may lurk near there. She had snuck to the lonely island a few times before, and it was a place that she found absolutely fascinating. There were all sorts of neat things there, including many engravings in the large rock walls that took up a majority of the space there, and a few small objects here and there that she didn't know what to make of, being so oddly shaped and textured. The place didn't host anything dangerous and she knew it. Not that her Mother really listened to anything she had to say about it.

The transaction was eventually completed, and the Khallsina girl had turned and was getting ready to head back home with the fish in hand, but despite the reminder of why she needed to get home soon staring at her, she still felt a crippling feeling of dissatisfaction in her mind, eating away at her. She took another look over at that island. She knew that she shouldn't. And yet, an enticing and insatiable compulsion to explore that island had sunken its claws deep into her. She just got out here. She didn't want to go back in quite yet. Not after that long, tiring day of being forced to stay inside and do little to nothing active. Besides, depending on how long this storm lasts, she could be stuck inside that hut for days. Her skin crawled at the idea of not being able to go out and stretch her legs or sniff the fresh air or feel the sun's warmth for that long. Plus, if she made it quick, she could quickly get in a little exploring and get back home before the raging cloak of black came around.

Giving in to her temptations, she briskly walked over to the other side of town, her heartbeat starting to increase slightly as the sight of the rock isle got closer with every step. Eventually, she made it to the edge of the town, the only thing now standing between her and her last bit of excitement for a while being the cluster of literal stepping stones. She set the fish down near one of the fences, then brought herself over to the very end of the village boarding, staring directly ahead at the beautiful blue hosting the small rocks. Without hesitation or worry, she sent one leg out, feeling the hard, rough and wet texture of the rock on her bare foot. She rapidly sent the other one out, stepping onto another stone. And then another. Then another. Then another. The cycle repeated itself in a rapid series of steps, stretches, and leaps, navigating the rocks with great finesse and intuition. Never for a second did Sy fear falling into the big blue that surrounded the rocks and brushed up against her feet, as her body carried her over across the obstacle course with a mind of its own. She never even needed to think about any step she took. She simply took it, and progress was made.

Eventually, the stone steps ceased, and her feet had brought her all the way over to her destination without her completely realizing it. There was just barely enough land on the point where she made it to the island to comfortably remain stable on it, as the rest of the space was being invasively occupied by the large boulders that made up the small island's center. If she ever stumbled back, Sy knew for a fact that she would've tumbled straight into the water. Taking great care not to let that happen, she proceeded along the right side of the land mass, keeping herself braced against the granite wall, and keeping her balance firmly in check. Her heart rate had already accelerated, embracing the thrill of getting to check out this place again. Her shimmying continuing to bring her along the isle, eventually leading to a dip into the wall, creating a sort of small outcropping that gave her actual room to move. This was the place.

Sy stepped onto the outcropping and turned her gaze over to the curving wall where she was greeted with one of her favorite finds she made on the isle: a series of pictures and unintelligible writing embedded into the rock. Some of it was carved, while other parts were painted. If the young brunette could see her reflection right now, she was positive that she would've seen her eyes sparkling, and her mouth agape. She had seen these pictures multiple times now, and yet, they never failed to capture her imagination. The series of images seemed to start at the very top and then travel downwards in chronological order. The reason she believed that lay in the order of how mysterious and far removed in art style each collection was.

At the top, engravings are shown of ordinary people, but wearing very strange and unorthodox shapes for clothing. And they all were standing close to an incredibly peculiar object that the Khallsina girl couldn't begin to describe. It vaguely resembles a giant bird, but nothing about its shape indicated it to be any type of living creature. And there appeared to be...clouds flowing out of its end? The shape was just so...foreign...alien...Sy was at a loss of words for it. It was so far beyond her understanding. But as she looked down at the next collection of engravings, the shapes used for the people's clothing was slightly changed, looking a bit more similar to the ones worn by her people, and also showing the people holding spears, with many fish stuck on the ends of each of them. The next one was interesting. Now the people were being drawn in some sort of white paint, slightly fading thanks to the age of the rock and pictures, but still intact. The clothing was beginning to even more closely resemble the ones possessed by the current villagers. The land they were standing on was now an engraved series of planks and pillars, looking similar to the floating village she herself lived on, and jumping out of the water was another painting, that of which resembling a Hasonil, with all forty-eight of its fins on display.

The last one, in particular, had always stood out to her. At the bottom of the collection, the images were exclusively painted with that same white material. However, what caught her eye was a striking contrast in familiar and unfamiliar imagery. There were a few of her people underwater, their clothing now bearing a near-perfect resemblance to the people of Futajena. That was the familiar part. What was unfamiliar to her were the creatures they were surrounded by: creatures greatly resembling humans in appearance, but at a certain point, their bodies had morphed into something else. The upper half was all familiar and good to hear, but their lower halves looked like something else. Something a bit closer to a fish in appearance. What were these? Even after all these years, she had no idea. There was nothing even closely resembling them in the list of animals in their records. It was yet another clue, at least to the young brunette, that there was more to this world than what she and the others knew about. The idea of making that discovery was one that cranked her excitement levels up to maximum.

She looked over at her right, seeking to continue her journey around the small isle to see what new things she could find, however as she was about to do so, she felt the warmth of the sun on her skin slowly fade away, prompting to look up and see a horrible sight: the black clouds had overtaken the sunset, casting a chilling shadow over the orange sky, and over Sy's spirits.

'Oh no! I must've taken too long!' She thought.

Now she was going to get caught in the storm for sure! The pace of her heart remained the same, but the thrill was swiftly replaced with fear and panic. Desperate to not waste any more time, she briskly walked back over to the left path, trying to go back the way she came and make it towards Futajena. However, as she made her way back over, at the point where she could once again see the rock steps and the village, she could also see the harsh reality of the situation staring straight at her. The storm clouds had completely coated the sky, not letting a single ray of light shine through, the waves were rapidly picking up in speed and intensity. There was not a single person visible outside the huts of the village.

Sy Khallsina was too late. She was out in the open, exposed to the approaching storm.

The howling violent winds of the storm wasted no time beginning to batter the young girl, as if a boat was slamming into her and trying to push her out of its path. Even her attempts to shield herself with her arms did little to keep the intense winds from shoving her back, and her attempts to keep her balance put intense strain on her planted legs. It was like trying to push back the world itself. Sy didn't have much time to process any of it, however, as the next second she found a barrage of tiny wet projectiles pouring down onto her being, soaking her clothes and head within seconds, and bringing a chill to her body she didn't think possible from mere water. It felt like she was in a different world entirely with how rapidly everything had transitioned from bright sunset to dark storm.

Immense panic was beginning to overtake her mind. She could practically feel her heart in her throat. A quick glance to her side showed the ocean whipping around madly, violently, and with little to no restraint. Like it could snatch up and swallow anything that was unlucky enough to get caught in its reach. Sy felt her stomach turning at there mere thought of that unlucky thing being her. Looking up and attempting to see through the rain's visual interference, the vague outline of the village's mildly rocky, but relatively sturdy image laid out on the other side of the rock steps, secured by their hardy and thoroughly placed stone support hidden by the ocean the village was established on. It was no longer even a doubt in her mind that she had to get back to her home to shelter, or risk getting blown off her feet and into the ocean, where she'd surely drown.

Swallowing nervously, the young brunette stepped forward, using one hand to keep the rain from blowing into her vision to the best of her ability, and using the other to grip the nearby rock, using it to steady herself as much as she could. Initially, fear's icy grip kept her legs in place, preventing her from stepping forward like she knew she must. Eventually, she summoned enough courage to take a step forward. Then another. Then another. Gradually making her way up, closer and closer to the village, pulling herself up against the force of the wet winds, trying her very best not to glance over at the sickeningly sinister and wrathful waves, lest she risk puking from pure terror. As scared as she was, she didn't want to spend another moment amidst this horrible storm. Oh, why did she have to go and explore that stupid small rock isle? She should've just listened to Mo and headed back home immediately! Then she wouldn't be out here fighting the elements themselves for her very life!

After enough small steps and fighting against the wind currents, she found herself face to face with the collection of rock steps that got her onto the isle, and by extension this mess, in the first place. With almost nothing to grip or hold onto, keeping her balance on those rocks with the wind and rain at work would be near impossible. The frightening reality of the situation clenched down hard on the young girl's spirits. Looking back at the spot she went to and where this whole predicament started, the thought of staying near this rock formation on the isle and waiting out the storm crossed her mind. It'd be less risky, that's for sure.

However, upon further thought, the chances of that plan succeeding crumbled into dust. Sy was already feeling her muscles aching slightly just trying to cling onto this rock for dear life, and it's only been minutes since the storm had arrived. It was very likely that this storm will last for hours, if not days, and she didn't have the stamina to keep her grip going forever. She'd eventually tire out and get thrown into the ocean anyways, and then she'd be truly be boned. Gazing back over at the stepping rocks, and then the large destination on the other side of them, her only option was currently staring at her in the face, and she knew it.

Taking as deep a breath she could without inviting water into her mouth, Sy slowly lifted her foot and brought it over to the first stone, the chill of the moist, cold stone surface rapidly registering in her foot's senses. A glance over to the rock reminded her of her one chance to back out of this plan. However, the young brunette knew that it was a chance she couldn't take.

'It's now or never.' She thought.

Pausing for a moment to try and summon up more courage, she quickly pushed off of the wall she previously used as her support and took another step onto an adjacent stepping stone. The reality of the difficulty she would experience in this endeavor hit her with a several-ton stone, as the vicious and forceful winds and unrelenting rain rammed into her full force, and threatened her balance with extreme contention, the unwavering waves licking her feet as she tried her best to remain on the rocks. Feeling her balance beginning to tumble away, Sy's survival instincts took over and kicked her into full throttle, rapidly stepping forward and trying to reorient herself and maneuver the rocks against the forces that seem conscripted to make it so that she never sees the sunrise again. Each desperate step brought her closer and closer to her destination.

Until a fatal error was made, and a foot slipped off of the rocks.

The rest of Sy Khallsina's body followed suit, finally giving in to the forces of nature and tumbling off the steps. The next thing she knew, the world had another sudden transition into something unrecognizable. Only this time, it was in the dark depths of the stormy ocean, the powerful currents and waves generated by the storm flinging and tossing her around like a rag doll, never truly giving her a chance to orient herself physically or mentally. The image of rocky pillar coiling up into an island flashed in front of her vision before she felt the breath she was holding forced out of her by an unexpected slamming of her side into the rock, equal parts blunt and sharp. The impact sent her spinning around, and air bubbles to leak from her mouth, up to the surface. The sharp pain in her side prompting her to place her hand on it, feeling blood and torn fabric on her hand as she did it.

Looking up, she saw the waving surface of the ocean, combined with a sudden burning feeling in her throat and chest. Panic took a full grip on her being, urging her to begin pushing against the currents to try and swim back up for air.

No! She couldn't die! Not here! She didn't want to die! She wanted to see her mother and father and brother again! She wasn't ready to leave this life behind!

Unfortunately, her attempts to swim up were met with powerful resistance, as the currents and waves kept pushing her back down, causing the distance between her and the surface to widen. Another rocky pillar, this one failing to extend up to the surface, entered her vision before she felt yet another sharp pain as the forceful will of the sea shoved her into the pillar, even harder this time and scraping up her side and back as she was dragged across its jagged edge. Seeing the torn remains of what was once her skirt floating away did nothing to stop Sy from attempting to close the gap between her and her precious air, however. Allowing the bleeding cuts to continue and showing only concern for air and little else, needing to quell the intense flame in her chest and throat.

It was all for naught, as the stormy currents were simply too strong, and refused to allow her up. Her efforts were rewarded with another hard slam to her torso that forced her mouth open, this time from a rock pillar she couldn't see until it was too late. Getting caught on and yanked across it until her top gave away and allowed her to float away free from it and the stone's grasps. Her strength was quickly being sapped by the sea water entering her lungs. Her pushes against the current proved futile with her fading strength. She could feel the corners of her vision getting a little dark. Panic and desperate survival instinct tried to push her on, and yet she could feel death's hand beginning to grip her. It looked a lot like the end. A pretty horrible and premature end.

A stinging sensation spiked at her side all the sudden, prompting her to look down at it. Seeing a peculiarly shaped dart in her bare flesh. A flash of confusion entered her mind briefly while she plucked it out of her side, seeing a yellow substance leaking out of its tip. That definitely wasn't there a second ago. If that wasn't enough, she detected movement in the black depths of the ocean around her, the shapes and figures near impossible to make out. She had no more time to process any of it, however, as a new painful sensation entered her being. One that forced her to crouch in and tense herself, as a wave of stinging sensations overtook her lower body and partially overtaking her feeling of drowning. The pain intensified to the point where thinking about anything else was a difficult task in of itself, becoming analogous with thousands of starng fish quills embedding into her lower torso, and her leg bones moving and shifting around.

However, the agony didn't entirely last. The next thing the drowning girl knew, a more soothing and numbing sensation entered her mind, forcing her into a calm she didn't think was possible when she was about to die. Her legs gave out limply while her two arms tried to weakly reach out to the distant surface. The stinging and painful shifting of her bones was still there but was now far reduced. She almost felt like she was coming fresh out of one of her meditation sessions with her father. Her vision continued to darken as the oxygen she desperately needed was still being denied to her. However, that feeling of need was being slightly reduced as she fell into the calming, almost trance-like state of mind. The sensations in her lower body went from being painful to being weird, and the strain on her lungs began to soften slightly. While her mind was becoming increasingly tranquil, what remained of her consciousness felt much confusion about what was happening.

Eventually, the strange and slightly hurting feeling in her lower body ceased, and the strain on her lungs to breathe had become almost non-existent. While she still tried to desperately reach for the surface, she took a moment to glance down to see what was happening. Aside from her exposed upper body and the torn shreds of what was once her undergarments, an unreal sight lay in front of her: her legs were gone. Replaced with a long, singular limb, covered in light-blue scales, and ending with a pair of fish-like fins.

What? What was this?

What was…

She couldn't ponder the question any further. Between the depletion of her consciousness incurred by her previous drowning and the tranquilizing feeling that had been implanted into her, she could no longer remain aware or awake. With one last glance at the surface of the stormy sea, and one final attempt to reach out to it with her right arm, the darkness in her vision fully consumed her, and she fell into complete unconsciousness.


	2. Chapter 2

The downpour continued to dominate the viewport

And yet, Private Dax Zynn's sense of the world remained as clear as ever. His Sonar readings serving as his guiding light through the darkness that was the storm. His scanners active and searching for rebel commlines and signals. His hand firmly grasping the joystick and instinctively guiding the craft to stick on Lieutenant Moor's right wing. His mind constantly being soothed by the soft hum of the Y-wing's engines in his ears.

Zynn honestly loved these ships. They may have considerable maintenance requirements and generally move like a sleepy hutt, but their lovely design, unparalleled endurance, and heavy payloads of explosives all greatly endeared the ships to the bearded young man. He's spent hours and hours of maintenance on the wishbones in between missions, and he'd gladly spend hours more if it meant he could keep flying in them. Maybe that's why Alliance Command allowed him to fly in the modified one as a part of his training and testing, and why they allowed him to keep it afterward. He's surprised that they'd leave such a successful variant in the hands of a new arrival to their ranks, but he wasn't about to complain. They probably have the schematics saved anyways if they want to make more.

While he was remaining on full alert the whole time and never kept his eyes off the sonar for more than two or three seconds at a time, he had to confess: it was a bit dull surveying the dish sink for these signals. After all, they had been searching for nearly an hour, and there were no signs of the large rock formations that were supposed to be in the sector. Dax wasn't about to allow himself to relax his guard in case the geological towers show up soon. His upbringing taught him better than that. But he believed that you could be alert and uninterested at the same time.

Come to think of it, he wasn't super-familiar with his squadmate: Mynce. They only have flown on a few missions together, and Zynn felt unsure of how to approach her, given the fact that she was a trandoshan. Not that he had anything against them as a species, not at all. She just never seemed like one of the more social ones, given how much time she spends by herself and she never displayed much interest in socializing. Still, curiosity's unrelenting grip knew no bounds for the young man. They're squadmates now, and they need to know each other so they can work together more effectively. Feeling confident in his ability to fly and talk at the same time, Dax opened up the comm channel.

"Hey, Mynce."

"Hm?" He heard her scratchy voice through the commlink

"Can I ask you something?" He spoke

"We're kind of in the middle of something right now, Dax."

"Yeah, I know, but we've been encountering a whole lot of nothing right now and I figured…"

He trailed off at the end, allowing the matter to hang in the air as white noise momentarily filled the commline. Eventually, a light sigh on Mynce's end cracked the silence

"Fine, what is it?"

"Where's your homeworld?"

"Trandosha. The homeworld of most trandoshans. It's in the Kashyyyk system. Why?"

"I was just curious. What's it like there?"

"Pretty Arid. Lots of mountains and grasslands and forests. The native wildlife there isn't exactly wholesome. It's part of the reason that so many trandoshans developed to be such deadly and efficient hunters. Had to be strong in order to survive."

"Huh. I see…"

"Any other small talk you'd like to make while we're on active duty?"

"N-no, sorry…"

Dax relented on talking to her, feeling apologetic for bothering her while on duty in the first place. He was about to begin conversing with R2-H4 when Mynce's voice was heard again on the commlink.

"...What about you?"

"Huh?"

"Where'd you come from?"

"Oh!"

Dax was caught off guard by her returning of the question. He was sure that she'd remain dismissive of him, but evidently not. Maybe she was just as bored as he was. Or maybe even lonely. Either way, Dax answered:

"Well, I was born and raised on Kothlis. It's a colony world in Bothan space."

"What was your family doing there?"

"They were born there too. A lot of Bothans are."

"Wait. Are you saying that your parents were-"

"Bothans? Yes."

"Really!?"

Kasan must've been listening, because her voice had joined Mynce in the commline. Zynn could practically see their widened eyes as they expressed their surprise in sync.

"Yes. I was left at an orphanage at a young age. I don't even remember what my biological parents looked like, it's been that long. A Bothan couple adopted me and raised me as their own. I owe a lot to them. They're my real parents as far as I'm concerned." The bearded young man explained.

"Interesting! I didn't notice a clan suffix in your surname, though. Why is that the case?" Kasan inquired.

Dax fell silent. Unpleasant memories began to bubble up to the surface of his mind. Teasing, mocking, belittling, bullying. Memories he desired to leave buried. In an effort to shove them back down, he shook his head and spoke up again.

"With all due respect, Lieutenant, that's private."

Another period of silence settled onto the commline. No doubt that his two squadmates were thinking about him and his insistence on remaining quiet on this matter.

"Very well." Kasan at last responded.

Zynn released a breath he didn't know he was holding. He was glad that they were off his back on that issue, at last. At the same time, his gut told him that this wouldn't be the last time they'd ask him about such matters. And that he'd have to push back those memories again…

Something hooked onto his eyes when he made another routine glance at the sonar. Taking a closer look at it, there was a large mass of matter headed straight his way! His alert but disinterested mind shifted over to complete alertness, reacting reflexively at the incoming signal by steering his craft over to the right. The visual of a towering rock pillar zooming past the left side of his viewport proved his instincts correct. Zynn could feel his heartbeat beginning to gradually accelerate as he looked down at the sonar again, now witnessing tons and tons of matter masses ahead.

Dax wasted no time in opening up the comm channel.

"Guys! Incoming rocks!"

"I saw them! Evasive maneuvers!" Kasan ordered.

The young man didn't hesitate to pull his joystick left, steering the Y-wing away from more and more rocks that came and went, both on his sonar and his viewport. Allowing his piloting instincts guiding his hands, the craft jerked left and right over and over again, weaving in between the tall stones that would spell his death in bold letters if he made hard contact. Sometimes, he had to spin it upside down and around in order to keep his vehicle out of the lethal reach of the geological obstacles.

"Looks like we found the rocky part of the sector!" Dax stated.

"No really? I thought we found the vacation spot advertised on the brochure!" Mynce sarcastically spat back.

"Lieutenant, We're going to get smashed to pieces down here! Requesting permission to fly up and over the storm." Dax frantically asked.

"Negative! Our target could still be within the vicinity of these rocks! We have to keep searching!" Lt. Moor gave her response.

"What!? We're flying in a kriffing minefield of rocks while blindfolded!" Mynce argued.

"Not completely, private! Keep your eyes on your sonars and keep scanning for rebel signals! We're not leaving until we've verified their presence or lack thereof in the sector!"

"Roger that…" Dax apprehensively obeyed.

"Fine! But don't say I didn't warn you if any of us bites it!" Mynce spoke.

With his heartbeat pulsing in his throat, Zynn continued weaving his intricate pattern of maneuvers. Now was as good a time as any for the speed and maneuverability modifications made to his Y-wing. He spoke to a commline to his R2 unit fitted snugly into the hull of his craft.

"Hang on back there, H4! Things are going to be rough for a while!"

The orange astromech chirped back an acknowledgment to the pilot as he continued his dodging. Dax's eyes were super-glued to the sonar, only occasionally looking up at the viewport for a split second to see the geological death towers phasing into view from the obstructive rainstorm. He could feel sweat developing on his forehead, drenching it like it was exposed to the downpour outside the cockpit. He may have flown through obstacle courses like this in the holo simulators, but the reality of the scenario really makes all the difference. Zynn had hardly noticed how quick and frantic his breath had become amidst the chaos. Still, he kept focus and pressed on, ensuring that he wasn't flying too far away from Kasan and Mynce. The rocks kept coming, and Zynn kept dodging.

His hyper-focused state was only somewhat interrupted by a message in binary coming into the commline. His R2 unit attempting to communicate with him.

"What is it...ugh...H4?" Dax asked as he kept evading.

Zynn wasn't completely prepared for the news that came next. H4 informed him that the scanners were detecting a Rebel comm signal. Dax's eyebrows rose as he took a quick glance over at his scanners, allowing the commlink signal displayed on the screen to confirm the news. it was faint, but doubtlessly there. A potential sign of the investigation team they were sent to find!

Inspecting the signal's contents, it was unmistakably Alliance, with subtle coding and frequency adjustments making it only detectable to Rebellion scanners. There's no way the Empire could have replicated it either. All of the telltale signs of Imperial fabrication and imitation were absent, and it was constructed in all the subtle ways which made it distinctly Alliance.

Dax didn't hesitate to speak to his two allies through the commlink.

"Guys, H4 found something! A rebel communication signal it looks like!"

"Well I'll be damned!" Mynce expressed mild surprise.

"I saw it too. Patching it through now." Kasan replied.

The commline in Dax's ears became polluted with static for a brief moment as the lieutenant hooked up the two frequencies, suddenly stopping after a few seconds to convey the success of the link. A somewhat low pitched and slightly distorted male voice spoke to them on the other end.

"Incoming Rebel ships, identify yourselves."

"This is Lieutenant Kasan Moor of the Alliance fleet. With me are Private Mynce and Private Zynn of Umbra Squadron. We are a rescue party sent by Rebel High Command to locate and extract the missing investigation team."

"Rescue party? I see. You and your party have permission to land, Lieutenant."

"Permission to land?" Kasan inquired.

"Yes. There's a large cave in one of the rock formations that we're using as a base. Lock on to our signal's point of origin and you'll eventually find it. You may land there so that we can talk."

"Understood. We're on our way."

As Dax continued to weave his pattern of evasion, took a look at his scanners, seeing how the signal was already fully traced to its source and located. No doubt the handiwork of his orange astromech. He couldn't resist a smile of gratitude to the mech. With the press of a few buttons, his computer locked onto the location and directed him towards the north-west. His heartbeat slowed slightly as slight relief came over him. Like some illumination was brought to the dark tunnel of uncertainty in his mind.

"Lieutenant, I'm locked onto the signal." He informed his superior officer.

"Same here." Mynce added.

"Good! Umbras, follow me! We're going after that signal!"

The bearded young man didn't even need to be told, as he was already pulling his craft over to the north-west. A brief glance to the left of the viewport showed the X-wing of his Lieutenant, with the A-wing of his contemporary to the left of that. They were all present and headed in the same direction, only breaking formation to evade the towers of stone in their way. Taking the visual reassurance in stride, Dax snapped his attention back over to his sonar and scanner to continue his navigation of the deadly obstacle course.

Not unlike threading a needle through fabric to sew clothing, the Y-wing continued to dodge in and around the geological structures, sometimes flirting with death as the wishbone ship narrowly missed a few of them. Dax's dexterity being the only thing standing between him and a lethal crash. He couldn't make any substantial mistakes, so he would make none. Being as careful and meticulous as possible while as he let his reflexes guide his actions. Any second spent overthinking would be a second he couldn't afford to take. And so he allowed his mind to singularly focus. It was just his instincts, the signal's direction, and the rocks guiding his actions.

Dax couldn't help himself but to take a quick look up at the viewport, making out the incoming various stone formations through the obstructive rain, and also seeing the vague outline of waves violently crashing up against them, causing the water to jump into the air and court with the underside of the young man's ship. Even the ocean wanted a taste of his metal wishbone. Well, that was too bad for it, because the ship was Zynn's, and nobody was taking it from him. Not even the forces of nature.

The scene outside of the viewport quickly shifted from bunches of smaller rock formations over to one monstrous rock, taking up the entire viewport's vision with its size and rapidly getting closer. Dax's heart jumped a meter into the air and he jerked his craft up and away, attempting to avoid the sudden structure. Although he was initially trying to encircle the rock, his eyes settled onto a giant hole in the obstacle's surface, with light flooding into it from the other side of it. A path he could take directly through this structure. His instincts willed his hand to bring the craft over into the hole, the constant downpour that had been taking center stage of his viewport finally ceased. Replaced by the interior of the rock structure.

No longer required to focus on the sonar to guide him, Zynn used his view instead to help him through the inside of the rock, yanking the craft left, right, down, up, and all around, steering it away from the walls that would spell his demise if he ran into. Although challenged by the tight turns and curves, Dax eventually saw the cloudy sky outside of the hole that he had reached. He was almost out. Unfortunately, Zynn's hand slipped, flooding his being with sudden panic as he found his craft running into the right side of the wall. The young man cried out and squeezed his eyes shut as the ship vibrated on contact, expecting to hear the sound of metal shattering and the feeling of being ground into dust under the boot of the stone walls.

A few seconds of nothing happening followed, prompting Dax to open his eyes and see that he and his ship were perfectly fine and had fully exited the cave. Looking down, there was the sight of his hand pushing the joystick safely away from the wall he thought he ran into. On top of that, the computer diagnostics of the ship's condition displayed that his craft had suffered no substantial damage. Only some minor scratches on the right wing that could be easily fixed. Dax let out a breath of relief.

'That was too close...' He thought.

"Dax! Are you okay? Report!"

The sound of Kasan's concerned voice entered the comm channel, clearly haven heard the private's shout.

"I-I'm fine. Just scratched the right wing. Nothing H4 can't take care of."

"Understood. Be more careful, Private Zynn."

"Roger that, ma'am."

Calming down somewhat, Dax resumed his evasive flight, granting his full focus back to his pilot reflexes and dodging the minefield of rock towers as he previously did. Looking down, he could see the signal had gotten very strong. The landing site must be nearby. Eager to cease dodging the seemingly endless stream of geological obstructions, he proceeded straight towards the direction given at greater speed. Upon glancing at the viewport, the sight of an A-wing nimbly maneuvering around the obstacles occasionally flashed by. Good to see that Mynce was doing well. And Zynn had no doubt in his head that Lieutenant Moor was avoiding the rocks with ease, wherever she was. This must be child's play to an ace pilot like her.

The signal strength soon enough became so high that the point of origin became a visible point on the radar. After dodging one last stone tower, Zynn pulled back the throttle of his craft, bringing down it's speed to appropriate levels for approaching a landing zone. Looking out the cabin of transparisteel and metal, the yellow engines of Mynce's nimble interceptor were settling down, and the closed frame of his Lieutenant's X-shaped fighter slowly joined his side as the craft approached the signal.

Through the thick rain, a particularly large and tall rock formation entered their vision. Just like the guy on the commline said, there was a huge gap in the structure just out of reach of the violent storm waves. It was tall enough to rival the legs of an AT-AT, and likely extremely deep, looking as if someone had carved a hole into it. With a subtle tilt of the joystick, Zynn guided the metal wishbone down into the hole, allowing shadows to take the place of the rain from outside, and closely following his two squadmates. A flick of a switch engaged the landing gear, and another switch flick caused the engines to surrender control of the craft's movement to the thrusters. Dax gently set down his craft as the other two did the same, eventually feeling the slight recoil of the landing gear touching the ground. He exhaled as relief washed over his mind. No more rain. No more stone obstacles. No more brushes with potential death. He could finally just look around at his surroundings.

—

Haven taken her moment to breath easy after the obstacle course she put herself and her pilots through, Kasan pushed a button to open the cockpit of the X-wing. The feeling of cold, moist air greeted her skin as the viewport opened up and she undid her buckles and restraints. Taking a look around, the dark stone interior of the cave actually boasted some illumination through some lights installed into the walls and heat lamps placed throughout.

Desiring to get a better look, Kasan grabbed her helmet and pulled it off her head, allowing her scalp of short dark-red hair to breath once again. After setting it down onto her seat, she got up and stepped out of the cockpit, sliding down off the edge and landing on her feet. The sight that greeted her was an interesting one for sure. Alliance personnel of various species populated the inside of the cave, numbering in the dozens. There were particularly noticeable amounts of aquatic species, like Mon Calamari and Nautolins. Makes sense, given the planet they are on. Up against the walls or even in the center were many crates and makeshift stations with computers and tables. In the way back corner of the cave lay an entire Rebel Gallofree medium transport. Nobody at the base seemed distressed or even all that alarmed. Although the arrival of the trio of pilots did draw the attention of quite a few of them.

Moor felt equal parts relieved and curious. On the one hand, it's good to see that the investigation team wasn't harmed, let alone killed or captured. On the other hand, it very much begged the question of why they hadn't reported back for weeks. She was going to have to get to the bottom of this soon. Perhaps by speaking to the leader of the team would she be able to learn something. The sound of boots impacting the stone ground to her right prompted the dark haired woman to look over, seeing the solid and muscular frames of her wingmen haven exited their own respective ships, clad in the signature orange and white flight suits that made up the wardrobe of Alliance pilots. They had taken off their helmets as well, allowing Kasan to properly see Dax's near-bald head and brown eyes, along with Mynce's dark green skin and sharp amber eyes. They appeared to be looking over at something. Or someone, rather. The lieutenant looked over at the same direction and saw who it was they were looking at.

A dark-orange male quarren dressed in navy blue spacer's clothing was walking towards them, his light-blue eyes alit with sincere friendliness. Kasan stepped towards him as well, the two eventually standing only a couple of meters apart. The quarren extended his hand in an offer to shake.

"Greetings, Lieutenant Moor. I am Captain Zharryk Tysk: The leader of the investigation team here."

The same distorted voice from the commline came from Tysk's tiny mouth. The captain must've been the one who guided them here. The distortion in the voice makes sense now, given his quarren biology. Kasan smiled back and took the gesture, shaking hands with Zharryk.

"A pleasure to meet you, Captain Tysk." She replied.

"So, you were sent as a rescue party by Alliance Command, if I recall."

"True. It doesn't look like your team ran into any trouble, however."

"You are correct. The operation has been running relatively smoothly and we've suffered little to no casualties. The Empire is still unaware of our presence thanks to our choice in location and our jamming technology preventing them from detecting us."

"So what happened? You were supposed to report back weeks ago."

The Quarren captain said nothing, looking away guiltily. Kasan raised her eyebrow in suspicion. He seemed like he knew something, although she didn't know what yet. Silence perpetuated the air between them for a few moments. Eventually, he looked up at her again.

"Come with me. I want to show you something. Something that will help me explain why we haven't reported back." He requested.

The quarren captain turned around and began walking towards one of the many desks throughout the makeshift base, and the three rebel pilots followed. Curiosity and skepticism had sunk their claws deep into the Lieutenant's mind. She will listen to what he has to say, but she wasn't having a good feeling about this. It was starting to seem like the Investigation team knowingly disobeyed protocol for less than convincing reasons, just based on Tysk's reaction to her asking about it. Still, maybe they'll present an acceptable case.

The captain eventually stopped at one of the desks, turning around to look at Kasan and her wingmen.

"As you know, we were dispatched to this planet to search for resources or other discoveries that the Empire could try using against us in the war. A couple of days in, however, and we found something else entirely. Yet just as valuable…"

Zharryk didn't give Moor time to ask what it was, as he had already grabbed one of the datapads and was handing one to her. Eager to understand what the captain was referring to, the dark haired woman took it and looked closely at the contents of the datapad. On display were images of various rock types, unearthed primitive tools, and engraved images and writing on walls. Coinciding the images were reports and recordings regarding such discoveries. The reports and recordings all seemed to suggest something:

"We firmly believe that this planet has or had intelligent life living on it at one point."

The captain spoke Kasan's mind. Intrigue swept across her mind. So this planet could have sentient life on it? If so, what are they and what would they know? And how would they be unique from other life in the galaxy? Moor passed the datapad onto her two wingmen so they could see it for themselves. As she looked back up to Zharryk, she saw a bright glimmer of passion and fascination in his eyes.

"Their recordings, their tools and equipment, it all points to civilization! There's so much potential for study and exploration here! Not just on the surface and rocks, but also beneath the ocean surface! We've located a good number of these findings in our diving expeditions! Our team could spend months analyzing these findings! Uncover the story of this planet and how it's life came to be!"

"Yeah...yeah, I can see what you mean!" Dax expressed his agreement while reading the information.

"Hm…interesting..." Mynce quietly mused as she looked at the data herself.

"This is very intriguing stuff you've uncovered, Captain. But tell me: what does this have to do with your failure to report back?" Moor inquired.

"Well, you see...while we have found all of this, we haven't actually found anything that would give us any substantial edge or support in the war. Most of the mineral deposits we detected so far are bog standard and common. Not really anything that we can't mine from other worlds that the Alliance has more immediate access to. And all the signs are pointing towards the local sentient life being primitive in terms of technology, which throws out any possibility of weapons or tech advancements that we could add to our arsenal."

The quarren glanced downwards in apprehension. Kasan's arms were already crossed, getting the distinct feeling that she somewhat knew where this was headed.

"...We feared that if we sent our report to Rebel High Command...that they would deem the planet a waste of investment and order us to pull out. But to do that when we have all of this fascinating history to uncover? It would be a tragedy!"

Kasan Moor sighed and shook her head.

"Captain, we're not archeologists. We're freedom fighters. Rebels. You and your team had your orders and you disobeyed them."

"But for good reasons! This is a golden opportunity to obtain knowledge of a world in the unknown regions! Besides, the Imperial investigation force is still here and isn't likely to depart anytime soon! What do you think will happen if they discover all of this? Bury it, confiscate it, destroy it, twist it around to suit their needs! Take your pick! We can't let them do any of that!"

"Out in the larger galaxy, the Empire is committing equally and oftentimes worse crimes than what you're describing! I should know, seeing what happened...to my homeworld. We need all of the supplies and manpower we can get to combat them. And we can't waste those supplies and people on small scale matters such as this."

"But Lieutenant!"

Kasan was surprised to hear Dax's voice argumentatively raised to her right.

"It's these small scale matters that's the reason we're fighting the Empire in the first place! If we turn our backs to this, what does that say about the Alliance and it's priorities?"

"Your subordinate speaks the truth! Also, what if there is sentient life still alive on this planet and those Imperial scum find them? They'll be enslaved and sent off to work until death! Just like on Alzoc III, Dac, and Kashyyyk among others!"

The mention of Kashyyyk provoked a surprised glance from Mynce, who then proceeded to look away with a heavy scowl on her face. Clearly bothered by something. Kasan decided not to inquire into it right now, but made a mental note to talk to her about it later.

"I can see and understand your points. However, this is ultimately not our decision to make. This is Alliance Command's call. If you think it's worth the effort to continue the investigation, then you should've told them and your reasons why in your report."

"Perhaps, but I feel unsure if that's worth the risk of them denying my requests. I thought that by simply making it look like we disappeared, that we could gain the time we needed to uncover a more convincing case for Rebel high command, and potentially thwart any Imperial plans for this planet if we can."

"And in doing so, disobeyed orders, and depending on how high command sees it, committed desertion. As much as I believe your intentions are noble, Zharryk, your actions have put you and your team in a difficult position. And one that you'll have to explain to our superiors in our report."

"But Lieutenant Moor!" Dax argued.

"They're not hurting anyone or even trying to! They're trying discover history and knowledge of an unknown world and stop the Empire from getting to them first! If Rebel High Command has a head on their shoulders, then they'd allow the investigation to continue!"

"That's a big assumption on your part, Private Zynn. And one that you have no business making. This isn't our decision, like it or not."

"So are we just going to go back and throw these good people under the speeder?"

"Unfortunately, yes. As soldiers of the Alliance, it is our job to report such actions to our superiors."

"No! You can't!"

Tysk angrily shouted at the Lieutenant, fist clenched, facial tentacles flaring out, brow twisting his leathery face into an indignant glare.

"We're doing nothing wrong! You would have us punished for simply attempting to uncover a civilization and its history before the Empire can tamper with either? You don't have to tell your superiors anything! You can help us instead!"

"Captain, you're suggesting that I disobey orders myself and neglect my duty as a soldier of the Alliance! You and your team have made this decision for yourselves. Don't drag me or my squadron down with you!"

"Lieutenant, with all due respect, this is wrong and you know it!" The bearded young man continued to argue with his flight leader.

"My opinion on the matter is irrelevant, Private." She responded.

"It doesn't have to be, Kasan. You can still do the right thing!" Tysk insisted.

Kasan was about to continue arguing her stance of remaining on the side of Alliance Command, but an unexpected interjection from Mynce came in:

"Look, Lieutenant. I'm not suggesting that I'm some expert on this sort of crap, or that I'm smarter than command. But this Alliance was forged on the back of thinking and deciding for yourself in the face of a higher authority. I'm pretty damn sure you would know what I mean, knowing your history."

The last sentence struck Kasan in a sensitive area of her mind and poked a hole in her resolve. Memories of her past as an Imperial pilot came flooding in. Memories of blindly taking the Empire's orders, striking down targets who didn't do anything wrong. Years of all that, until….until…

She shook her head, trying to clear her mind of those thoughts. The...incident aside, she suppose she was doing something somewhat similar here. The Captain and his team disobeyed orders, but not without good reasons. Throwing innocent people under the speeder by blindly following orders. Has she really not changed since those days?

At the same time, it wasn't that simple. If Alliance Command ever found out that she disobeyed protocol, there would be consequences for her. For everyone involved. This was a difficult matter, and the Lieutenant found much difficulty in reaching a decision one way or the other. In the meantime, she had to say something to the people around her. So she decided to humor them somewhat.

"I'll...think about it."

Dax's face lit up with joy upon hearing her answer, and Mynce failed to suppress a smile at the dark haired woman.

"Thank you, Kasan. I'll give you as much time as you need. In the meantime, I imagine that some of you might be a bit tired. We're minutes away from nightfall after all." Tysk suggested.

Now that he mentioned it. Kasan did feel her alertness levels were somewhat waning. She and her team had to go through a long series of hyperspace jumps and sneak past Imperial detection before they got to Miras. Add the hour and a half they've spent on the planet itself, and they could all use some shut eye.

"Very well. Where is the barracks?"

"Over at the far right corner of the cave. There should be enough beds for all three of you, even accounting for the staff who are currently resting."

Kasan nodded in acknowledgement, then stepped in the direction of the barracks as directed by the Captain, shortly joined by her two wingmen. She had a lot to consider and think about. Perhaps a bit of rest would help her come to a conclusion. Follow her orders, or follow her instincts.

She'd have to reach a decision sooner or later.


End file.
